According to Avedisova, RCW 120 is ionised by the O8 V star CD -38 11636 (CGO 439) and the B2 V star VDBH 84B. She places the nebula in the star formation region SFR 348.26+0.47 along with 3 masers and the radio HII region [CH87] 347.386+0.266.

A 2005 study refers to the Avedisova paper and gives the class of the main ionising star as O6 V, so the star may be hotter than Avedisova suggests.[4]

Distance estimates

Links

Most of the sources used to create these nebula descriptions are listed in the
notes section for each description. In some cases,
for example the Avedisova, Humphreys and Reed catalogs, the source is used extensively and is not listed in the
individual nebula descriptions. See this catalog overview
for more information on the catalogs and the general sources used
to create these descriptions and this introduction to HII regions
on the general history of this area of astronomy.

According to my correspondence with the Royal Observatory Edinburgh and the Space Telescope Science Institute,
I am allowed to use the POSS-II/UKSTU data to
create and display images for non-commercial purposes
so long as I include this fine print for the SuperCOSMOS data:

Use of these images is courtesy of the UK Schmidt Telescope (copyright in
which is owned by the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council of
the UK and the Anglo-Australian Telescope Board) and the Southern Sky Survey
as created by the SuperCOSMOS measuring machine and are reproduced here
with permission from the Royal Observatory Edinburgh.

and this acknowledgement taken from the DSS site:

The Digitized Sky Surveys were produced at the Space Telescope Science Institute under
U.S. Government grant NAG W-2166. The images of these surveys are based on photographic
data obtained using the Oschin Schmidt Telescope on Palomar Mountain and the UK Schmidt Telescope.
The plates were processed into the present compressed digital form with the permission of these institutions.

The Second Palomar Observatory Sky Survey (POSS-II) was made by the
California Institute of Technology with funds from the National Science Foundation,
the National Geographic Society, the Sloan Foundation, the Samuel Oschin Foundation,
and the Eastman Kodak Corporation.

The UK Schmidt Telescope was operated by the Royal Observatory Edinburgh,
with funding from the UK Science and Engineering Research Council
(later the UK Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council), until 1988 June,
and thereafter by the Anglo-Australian Observatory. The blue plates of the southern Sky Atlas
and its Equatorial Extension (together known as the SERC-J), as well as the Equatorial Red (ER),
and the Second Epoch [red] Survey (SES) were all taken with the UK Schmidt.

The "Second Epoch Survey" of the southern sky was made by the
Anglo-Australian Observatory (AAO) with the UK Schmidt Telescope.
Plates from this survey have been digitized and compressed by the ST ScI.
The digitized images are copyright ? 1993-5 by the Anglo-Australian Observatory Board,
and are distributed herein by agreement.

The "Equatorial Red Atlas" of the southern sky was made with the UK Schmidt Telescope.
Plates from this survey have been digitized and compressed by the ST ScI.
The digitized images are copyright ? 1992-5, jointly by the UK SERC/PPARC
(Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council,
formerly Science and Engineering Research Council) and the Anglo-Australian Telescope Board,
and are distributed herein by agreement.

The compressed files of the "Palomar Observatory - Space Telescope Science Institute Digital Sky Survey"
of the northern sky, based on scans of the Second Palomar Sky Survey are copyright ? 1993-1995 by the
California Institute of Technology and are distributed herein by agreement.
The compressed files of the "Palomar Observatory - Space Telescope Science Institute Digital Sky Survey"
of the northern sky, based on scans of the Second Palomar Sky Survey are copyright ? 1993-1995
by the California Institute of Technology and are distributed herein by agreement.